by Devilish » Fri Dec 28, 2018 6:05 am
What I know from experience, and facts from the horse's mouths.
The area manager/owners have no say, and could not care less if a single customer walks through the door or not. Or if someone rents it as a private home, as long as they get their money. All they are concerned about is rent money, and the pub. The decision relating to us holding nano meets there is up to the licencee paying the rent, and no one else. It is not the area manager/owners who will loose their licence. Even if the owners grant permission, it would have to be written into the rental agreement that will never happen, even then it would still be up to the licensee at the end of the day.
If I were the area manager and was asked about car meets at The Ashes, my reply could only be "if it gets reported to the council, it's your licence, I do not care"
Remember the big white gazebo that was erected outside the Ashes a while ago. Man from the council visited to tell the licensee "That gazebo is classed as a building, you do not have permission. You have to take it down".
"Car meets are banned from being held at The Four Ashes. The decision made years ago by the council and the police. Previous tenants have tried to re open car meets, who were told in no uncertain terms "If you hold another car meet, you will have your licence taken away". What we hold is exactly that, a car meet..... hosted by us.... hidden out the way...... on a weekend......just have to cut the grass..... Bain marie .... Bonnet de douche....... Bonjour.
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Public liability insurance is and would be an invitation to disaster, this I cannot stress against strongly enough. A nano meet is not open to the public, members of the public are not allowed, it is a private function for invited guests, we do not allow members of the public to park on the area used for our nano meets. It is like having public liability insurance for a wedding or birthday party. Anyone invited to, or visiting a nano meet, are advised in the ethos.
Nano Ethos Nano vision -MUST READ PLEASE !
"it's YOUR car. You take responsibility for it. You decide whether you are happy to let a madman start tearing it apart. We will usually try to assist with most things which are within our ability and within the bounds of common sense.
" Cars and people in the same area can happily co-exist, providing both drivers and pedestrians take care".
Any pub/public blah blah 'what if's I can take care of by a PRIVATE notice on the entrance, combined with the fact that the nano meet is not held on a public car park, but held in a private area secured by a locked gate, prohibiting public access. If this is not enough I am more than willing to be the one to approach, to ask any members of the public who decide to drive into the nano site if they can read.
Perhaps a small addendum to the 'ethos', or a few lines may be overdue, that I will look into.
Not so long ago the same thing happened to probably the biggest weekly bike meet in the country I frequently attended. It got so big, with so many people, it got spoiled by the few, look at me taunting the police. Eventually, one hit two police vehicles that tried to stop him. Police announced "anyone still there with a motorcycle in 60 minutes time would be arrested, and the meet was shut down.
The Ashes needs someone who can afford to run the pub for at least 2 years, before their money is not being flushed down the bog, and start to break even. Good food and drink (that I personally have not experienced for years) with enough custom, growing reputation, money and influence to re open the prospective gold mine, that is the car meets that grew to be bigger than any pub car meet I have known, that is at present, banned.
In reality, agreeing to bung the licensee a few quid, is no different to giving a barmaid a tip, especially on a field at a pub that is already used for such meets.
We would not be actually charging for attendance, there will be a voluntary contribution box, that we already have, we are just going to ask people to make a voluntary contribution, that we already do, some will, some may not, some more than others, this is totally up to the individual, Understandable, that a donation from someone who comes just to help, is going to be different than someone who would save £100's at a garage. Difference is now, the future of the nano will depend upon it.
Nothing we do or say will alter our future at the Ashes. If someone takes it on and re opens it, I cannot foresee that they will be there come spring, I personally do not see the point in approaching a new tenant if there is one, until a few weeks before the next planned nano date.
The last few social nights and the last nano, I felt like Hitler walking into a bar mitzfah
Enough from me.